MANILA: The Philippine housing industry continues to grow on the back of the increasing remittances from overseas Filipino workers and an ever-growing BPO (business process outsourcing) industry, a real estate expert has pointed out
“Prospects for the Philippine housing industry continue to be bright as key growth drivers of the economy, namely: the remittances from overseas Filipino workers and an ever-growing BPO (business process outsourcing) industry are fueling demand for housing,” Inquirer quoted Rodel Racadio, national president of the Subdivision and Housing Developers Association Inc. (SHDA), the country’s largest association of private developers, as saying.
“The growth of the country’s population is expected to further heighten this demand as the industry’s market is highly dependent on the number of households which need to be provided housing,” said Racadio, who will be part of the SHDA National Convention to be held at the Iloilo Convention Center in Mandurriao, Iloilo City, from Sept. 22 to 23.
Taking cue from the convention theme, “The Many Faces of Housing—‘Enhancing Lives,’” the annual gathering of SHDA’s 200 members from chapters across Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao will take into account the number of Filipinos that is projected to grow by more than a million annually, from around 95 million in 2011 to 126 million by 2030, the report said.
Armenia Ballesteros, SHDA chair, reportedly said: “This growth translates into 19 million Filipino households in 2011 to about 25 million by 2030 or an additional six million households within a period of 19 years. Based on these numbers, the demand for living space is expected to increase continuously. We, as practitioners in the housing industry must be prepared to supply the housing units that should meet this demand. The impact of the industry’s growth on the Philippine economy will definitely be felt as the value chain of the housing industry cuts across various sectors.”
SHDA first vice president and convention chair Fely Ramos said: “Shelter is a basic need of every Filipino family. To ensure that this need is addressed regardless of the family’s economic status, we, as housing developers offer homes that cater to different market segments (a reason why socialized housing, low-cost housing and economic housing exist). The need is more felt among the lower-income levels, which has spurred us housing developers to innovate in the area of housing production in order to provide affordable housing units that meet the industry’s quality standards.”
